SECTION
2 Native American
What You Will Learn…
Main Ideas
1. Several early societies
developed in North America
long before Europeans
explored the continent.
2. Geographic areas influenced
Native American cultures.
3. Native American cultures
shared beliefs about religion
and land ownership.
The Big Idea
Many diverse Native American
cultures developed across the
different geographic regions of
North America.
Key Terms and People
pueblos, p. 11
kivas, p. 11
totems, p. 12
teepees, p. 14
matrilineal, p. 14
Iroquois League, p. 14
Use the graphic organizer online
to take notes on Native American
cultures of North America.
10 Chapter 1
Cultures
If YOU were there...
You live in the North American Southwest about 1,000 years ago.
You’ve been working in the fields for several hours today. The maize
crop looks good this summer, and you are hoping for a successful
harvest. After finishing your work, you walk home. The opening to
your house is in a cliff wall 30 feet above a canyon floor. You must
use ladders to get to the opening.
Do you like the location of your home? Why?
Building Background After crossing the land bridge from
Asia during the Ice Age, hunter-gatherer groups spread into every
region of North America. Many diverse cultures formed as Native
Americans adapted to their different environments.
Early Societies
The earliest people in North America were hunter-gatherers. After
5000 BC some of these people learned how to farm, and they set-
tled in villages. Although less populated than South America and
Mesoamerica, North America had many complex societies long
before Europeans reached the continent.
Anasazi
By 1500 BC the people who lived in the North American South-
west, like those who lived in Mesoamerica, were growing maize.
One of the early farm cultures in the Southwest was the Anasazi
(ah-nuh-sah-zee). The Anasazi lived in the Four Corners region,
where present-day Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah meet.
Anasazi farmers adapted to their dry environment and grew maize,
beans, and squash. Over time, they began to use irrigation to
increase food production. By the time the Anasazi settled in the
area, they were already skilled basket makers. They wove straw,
vines, and yucca to make containers for food and other items, and
they eventually became skilled potters as well.
 Anasazi Cliff Dwellings
The early Anasazi lived in pit houses dug
into the ground. After about AD 750 they
built pueblos , or aboveground houses made
of a heavy clay called adobe. The Anasazi built
these houses on top of each other, creating
large multistoried complexes. Some pueblos
had several hundred rooms and could house
1,000 people.
The Anasazi often built their houses in
canyon walls and had to use ladders to enter
their homes. These cliff dwellings provided a
strong defense against enemies. The Anasazi
also built kivas , underground ceremonial
chambers, at the center of each community.
Kivas were sacred areas used for religious cer-
emonies. Some of these rituals focused on
the life-giving forces of rain and maize.
The Anasazi thrived for hundreds of
years. After AD 1300, however, they began to
abandon their villages. Scholars believe that
drought, disease, or raids by nomadic tribes
from the north may have caused the Anasazi
to move away from their pueblos.
Mound Builders
Several farming societies developed in the
eastern part of North America after 1000
BC. The Hopewell lived along the Missis-
sippi, Ohio, and lower Missouri river valleys.
Dwellings like these were built into cliffs
for safety. Often, ladders were needed to
reach the buildings. The ladders could be
removed, keeping invaders from reach-
ing the dwelllings.
They supported their large population with
agriculture and trade. They built large burial
mounds to honor their dead.
The Hopewell culture had declined by
AD 700. Another culture, the Mississippian,
began to thrive in the same area. Skilled
farmers and traders, the Mississippian built
large settlements. Their largest city, Cahokia,
was located near present-day Saint Louis,
Missouri. It had a population of 30,000.
The Mississippian built hundreds of
mounds for religious ceremonies. Cahokia
alone had more than 100 temple and burial
mounds. These mounds had flat tops, and
temples were built on top of the mounds.
Many of the mounds were gigantic. Monks
Mound, near Collinsville, Illinois, for exam-
ple, was 100 feet high and covered 16 acres.
Several other mound-building cultures
thrived in eastern North America. More than
10,000 mounds have been found in the Ohio
River valley alone. Some of these mounds are
shaped like birds and snakes. The mound-
building cultures had declined by the time
European explorers reached the Southeast. Their
societies no longer existed by the early 1700s.
Reading Check Summarizing Why did
some Native American groups build mounds?
the world before the opening of the atlantic 11
 Native American Culture Areas
ah06se_c01map004aa
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Middle School - American History
F5 Proof - 10/26/04
Native American Culture
Areas
Researchers use culture areas—the geographic
locations that influenced societies—to help
them describe ancient Native American peo-
ples. North America is divided into several
culture areas.
North and Northwest
The far north of North America is divided into
the Arctic and Subarctic culture areas. Few
plants grow in the Arctic because the ground is
always frozen beneath a thin top layer of soil.
This harsh environment was home to two
groups of people, the Inuit and the Aleut. The
Inuit lived in present-day northern Alaska and
Canada. Their homes were igloos, hide tents,
and huts. The Aleut, whose home was in west-
ern and southern Alaska, lived in multifamily
houses that were partially underground. The
two groups shared many cultural features,
including language. Both groups survived by
fishing and hunting large mammals. The Aleut
and Inuit also depended on dogs for many
tasks, such as hunting and pulling sleds.
South of the Arctic lies the Subarctic,
home to groups such as the Dogrib and Mon-
tagnais peoples. While they followed the sea-
sonal migrations of deer, these peoples lived
in shelters made of animal skins. At other
times, they lived in villages made up of log
houses. Farther south, the Kwakiutl and the
Chinook thrived, thanks to the rich supply
of game animals, fish, and wild plants that
allowed large populations to increase with-
out the need for farming.
Native Americans in the Pacific North-
F OCUS ON west carved images of totems — ancestor or
R EADING
animal spirits—on tall, wooden poles. Totem
What is the
definition of poles held great religious and historical signif-
totems according icance for Native Americans of the Northwest.
to this sentence? Feasts called potlatches were another unique,
or unusual, aspect of these Native Americans’
culture. At these gatherings, hosts, usually
chiefs or wealthy people, gave away most of
their belongings as gifts. In this way, the hosts
increased their social importance.
12 Chapter 1
Bering
Sea
Inuit
Aleut
West and Southwest
Farther south along the Pacific coast was the
California region, which included the area
between the Pacific and the Sierra Nevada
mountain range. Food sources were plenti-
ful, so farming was not necessary. One major
plant food was acorns, which were ground
into flour. People also fished and hunted deer
and other game. Most Native Americans in
the California region lived in groups of fami-
lies of about 50 to 300. Among these groups,
including the Hupa, Miwok, and Yokuts,
more than 100 languages were spoken.
The area east of the Sierra Nevada, the
Great Basin, received little rain. To survive,
Native Americans adapted to the drier climate
by gathering seeds, digging roots, and trap-
ping small animals for food. Most groups in
this area, including the Paiute, Shoshone, and
Ute, spoke the same language.
The Southwest culture region included
the present-day states of Arizona and New
Mexico, and parts of Colorado and Texas.
Pueblo groups, such as the Hopi and Zuni,
lived there. Like the Anasazi, these Native
Americans also adapted to a dry climate. The
Pueblo irrigated the land and grew maize,
squash, and beans. These crops were vital to
southwestern peoples. The Pueblo religion
focused on two key areas of Pueblo life, rain
and maize. The Pueblo performed religious
rituals hoping to bring rain and a successful
maize crop to their peoples.
Pueblo peoples were settled and built mul-
tistoried houses out of adobe bricks. Over time
their towns grew larger, and some towns had
more than 1,000 residents. Pueblo peoples
made fine pottery that featured beautifully
painted designs.
 Native American Culture Areas Arctic
Subarctic
Northeast
Great Basin
30˚W

Inuit Northwest Coast California

Plateau Southwest
Great Plains Southeast
Ingalik 0 250 500 Miles

0 250 500 Kilometers

40˚W

Han
Saschutkenne ircl
e ˚N
Inuit ic C 60
Arct

Eyak Dogrib Inuit Native American Culture 50˚WAreas

Tagish
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Middle School - American History
Sewing tool with
MapQuest.com/HRW
Bird-shaped carved bone han-
Tlingit Final Proof - 09/01/04--10/26/04
pipe, Northwest Inuit dle, Great Plains
Coast culture Slave Hudson ˚N
Chipewyan Bay
culture area 50
area
Beaver
Tongass Naskapi Beothuk
Carrier Swampy
Haisla Cree
Haida
Montagnais
Heiltsuk NORTH
Kwakiutl Micmac
AMERICA
Nootka Shuswap
Squamish
Makah Nooksack
Chimakum Plains Plains Algonquian
Coast Columbia Blackfoot Cree Ojibway 60˚W
Salish Ottawa Massachuset
Spokane ˚N
40

Wamaganse
Chinook
R

Narr ot
Yakima Huron

Peq gan k
Mandan
ois

Mo aw
Gre
O

Klickitat Walla Walla Nez at qu

pano tt
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M neidnda
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Percé Crow Iro

O o ga

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oh a ga
Lak N

On ayu eca
Yaquina Santee es

C en
ala
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Sauk

ag
Mol

S
Northern Sioux Potawatomi
Paiute Teton Sioux
M

Umpqua Fox W

Tolowa Modoc Northern Cheyenne Kickapoo S

OU

Hupa Achomawi Shoshone Omaha Susqu Delaware

Iowa Miami ehann
a
Pawnee
NT

Illinois
Was
Mai

Yuki
Wappo Western Arapaho Missouri Powhatan
AT L A N T I C
du

AI
ho

Shoshone Shawnee
Miwok Kansa Cahokia e
NS

Costanoan Ute ke OCEAN

Mono e ro
Esselen Kawaiisu
Osage Ch Cheraw 30
˚N
Yokuts Hopi (Pueblo) Apache Chickasaw
Chumash Kiowa Tuskegee Cusabo
Navajo
Mohave Creek
Zuni (Pueblo) Comanche Alabama
Apache Wichita
Yuma Choctaw Apalachee
Caddo Mobile
Nakipa Suma Tonkawa
Pima
Jumano a
aw
Cochimi a nk
Seri r Seminole
Ta Ka Calusa
ra
Ignacieno Yaqui hu
m
ar Gulf of Mexico 70˚W
a
ncer
of Ca
Tropic Taino
Waicura Lagunero
geography 20˚N
Guachichil skills INTERPRETING MAPS
Caribbean
MESOAMERICA 1. Region Why did some culture areas have Sea
fewer groups of people than other culture
Human figure, areas did?
Southwest 2. Human-Environment Interaction What
culture area
natural features served as boundaries between
culture areas?
10˚N
PA C I F I C O C E A N
the world before the opening of the atlantic 13
120˚W
110˚W 100˚W 90˚W 80˚W
Iroquois Longhouse
The Apache and Navajo also lived in the
Southwest. These groups were nomadic—they
moved from place to place hunting small ani-
mals and foraging for food. The Apache and
Navajo also supported themselves by raiding
the villages of the Pueblo and others.
Great Plains
The huge Great Plains region stretches south
from Canada into Texas. This culture area
is bordered by the Mississippi Valley on the
east and the Rocky Mountains on the west.
The Plains were mainly grassland, home to
millions of buffalo. Deer, elk, and other game
also thrived there.
Most Great Plains peoples were nomadic
hunters. Many groups hunted buffalo using
bows and spears. Blackfoot and Arapaho hunt-
ers sometimes chased the animals over cliffs,
drove them into corrals, or trapped them in
a ring of fire. Native Americans used buffalo
skins for shields, clothing, and coverings for
their teepees — cone-shaped shelters.
Some Plains groups were farmers. The
Mandan and Pawnee settled in villages and
grew corn, beans, and squash. The Pawnee
lived in round lodges made of dirt. Like some
other Native American groups, Pawnee soci-
ety was matrilineal. This means that people
traced their ancestry through their mothers,
not their fathers.
14 Chapter 1
Northeastern Native Americans
such as the Iroquois lived in
longhouses made of tree bark. The
drawing shows the longhouses in
one Iroquois village.
Why do you think a fence was placed
around the longhouses?
Northeast and Southeast
Eastern North America was rich in sources
for food and shelter. Animals, plant foods,
fish, and wood for housing were plentiful in
the region’s woodlands and river valleys.
Most southeastern groups, including
the Cherokee, Creek, and Seminole, lived in
farming villages governed by village councils.
In the Northeast, groups like the Algonquian
survived by hunting and gathering plants.
Those in the south farmed, hunted, gathered
plants, and fished. Many tribes used strings
of beads known as wampum for money.
To the east of the Algonquian lived the
Iroquois (or Haudenosaunee). They were
farmers, hunters, and traders who lived in
longhouses, or rectangular homes made from
logs and bark, that housed 8 to 10 families.
The Iroquois created the Iroquois League.
This confederation, or alliance, was established
by the Cayuga, Mohawk, Oneida, Onondaga,
and Seneca. The league waged war against
and made peace with non-Iroquois peo-
ples. Its goal was to strengthen the alliance
against invasion. The league helped the
Iroquois become one of the most powerful
Native American peoples in North America.
Reading Check Generalizing How did
environment influence Native American
cultures in North America?
Shared Beliefs to use it was temporary. Native Amer­ icans
also thought they should preserve the land
Although they were different culturally and
for future generations. These beliefs contrasted
geographically, Native American groups of
sharply with those of Europeans— a difference
North America shared certain beliefs. The
that would cause conflict.
religion of most Native American peoples, for
Despite their shared beliefs, the diverse
example, was linked to nature. Native Ameri-
culture groups of North America had little
cans believed that spiritual forces were every-
interest in joining together into large politi-
where, dwelling in heavenly bodies and in
cal units. As a result, Native Americans on
sacred places on the earth. Spirits even lived
the North American continent did not form
within animals and plants. Native Americans
large empires like the Aztec and Inca of Meso-
tried to honor the spirits in their daily lives.
and South America did.
Ceremonies maintained the group’s rela-
tionship with Earth and Sky, which were Reading Check Identifying Points of View
believed to be the sustainers of life. In addi- What religious beliefs did Native American
tion, individuals who wanted help prayed to groups share?
their spirit protector.
Native Americans also shared beliefs
about property. They believed that indi-   
SUmmary and Preview People of
vidual ownership only applied to the crops North America formed many complex
one grew. The land itself was for the use of societies. In the next section you will
everyone in the village, and a person’s right read about societies in West Africa.

Section 2 Assessment ONLINE QUIZ

Reviewing Ideas, Terms, and People Critical Thinking

1. a. Recall Why did the Anasazi build kivas?
b. Summarize What different types of housing
were built by the Anasazi?
c. Draw Conclusions Why do you think that some
mounds were built in the shape of birds and snakes?
2. a. Identify What are culture areas?
b. Contrast How did food sources for Native
­Americans of the North and Northwest differ from
those of Native Americans living in the West and
Southwest?
c. Elaborate Why was the formation of the
Iroquois League considered to be a significant
political development?
3. a. Recall How did Native Americans view land
ownership?
b. Analyze What role did religion play in the lives
of Native Americans?
c. Predict Why do you think most Native American
groups did not form large empires like the Aztec
and the Inca did?
4. Comparing and Contrasting Review your notes
on early societies and culture areas. Then use a Venn
diagram like this one to identify similarities and dif-
ferences among Native American culture groups.
North and
Northwest
West and Northeast and
Southwest Southeast
Great Plains
Focus on Writing
5. Describing Culture Look back through this
section to discover ways in which a group’s beliefs,
environment, and practices can be described. Write
down phrases that you think are especially useful in
understanding Native American cultures.

the world before the opening of the atlantic 15